Alleged killer of West Norriton man waives preliminary hearing

NORRISTOWN — Nineteen-year-old Rontrey Wilkins, the accused killer in the February shooting of a West Norriton man after an alleged botched drug deal, waived his preliminary hearing Friday morning before District Justice Francis Lawrence.

Wilkins, of the 500 block of Buttonwood Street, Norristown, is charged with first- second- and third-degree murder, robbery, criminal conspiracy, reckless endangerment and related offenses in the Feb. 11 shooting of Andrew Polen.

According to the affidavit, just before 8 p.m. that night, Wilkins and a co-conspirator had targeted two men for a robbery in the 1200 block of Lafayette Street. They reportedly met the men in a car to make a transaction.

During the course of the robbery, Wilkins allegedly tried to jump out of the moving vehicle and shot multiple rounds at the occupants of the vehicle.

One or more bullets struck Polen and he was pronounced dead moments later at Mercy Suburban Hospital.

“He is very, very frightened, saddened by what he did, saddened for what he did to the surviving family,” said defense attorney Saul Solomon Friday morning.

“He understands how serious this is. He knows there’s a possibility of a life sentence. When you’re 18 or 19, a life sentence is a life. He knows he took a life, but he also has some mitigating circumstances. He’s never been in trouble before. He comes from a wonderful family.”

Solomon claims the incident started out with the victim demanding money for drugs. He said it quickly escalated, and that’s when things got out of control.

“He’ll be wearing a prison outfit for a very long time probably,” said Solomon.

The driver of the vehicle survived the assault and reportedly drove Polen to the hospital, where he died from his injuries.

A day after the shooting, Wilkins reportedly admitted his role to detectives. An accomplice, Andrew Tomlinson, was arrested last week. He was arraigned before Judge Lawrence and held without bail.

“I think second- and third- (degree murder) are pretty clear-cut, even first-degree. You’re firing rounds into a vehicle from a short distance away or even from the back seat. I think that shows a clear intent to kill,” said Assistant District Attorney Heather Hines.

During the investigation, a search of Wilkins’ home resulted in the finding of a .32 caliber pistol, a 12-gauge pump shotgun, assorted .32 caliber and 12-gauge shotgun ammunition, drug paraphernalia and more than 100 baggies of suspected heroin, according the police.